LEOPARD PROJECT CONTROLS
Planning
Melanie Calverley is an experienced professional with several years of knowledge and practice in Project Management as a Program Cost and Schedule Control Analyst on multi-million/multi-billion dollar projects, Project Controls, Strategic Planning, Engineering Planning, Earned Value Management (EVM), and Earned Value Management System (EVMS) implementation, Configuration Management, and writing/editing. She commands full utilization of Primavera P6 software, MS Project, and MS Project Server. Her career background includes industry experience in oil and gas, energy, aerospace/defense, IT, litigation, and media.
Calverley has extensive experience in the planning and scheduling arena since 1999, as well as extensive experience in the aerospace and oil and gas industries combined. Calverley has worked for the large and high-visibility players in the aerospace industry - Boeing and Lockheed Martin, as well as the large companies in the O&G industry, such as Schlumberger, GE Energy, and Chevron. She supported NASA directly and a host of smaller sub-contractors over the years before exploring the O&G and IT industries. Calverley understands the strict, organized flow of the aerospace industry's horizontal and vertical logic integration, the criticality of resource loading, and the reporting functions that support Earned Value Management (EVM). She has also participated in various audits such as DCMA audits, JSRs, ISRs, and CAM reviews. In 2013, Calverley was responsible for implementing a full EVMS in Primavera for Cameron International's (now Schlumberger) Process Systems Division across the globe. The system was fully tested and successfully implemented and run in the United States, Brazil, the UK, Malaysia, Singapore, and the Middle East.
Calverley owns her own business, Calverley Consulting, LLC, which has been operational since 2017. Calverley is also a solid writer, editor, and process flow documentation expert. She possesses a full command of the proper English language, and she is also a published book author. Calverley developed and championed multiple process flows and written documentation via policies and procedures for various well-known companies.
Using and Managing Primavera P6 Notebook Topics
Introduction to Primavera P6 Notebook Topics Primavera P6 users can take advantage of tracking their project concerns with its ability to store and communicate project notebook topics. Situations and points that need to be documented often arise during the execution of a project. Being able to conveniently document, store, and communicate these concerns to the project team can be valuable throughout the lifecycle of the project. Primavera P6 notebook topics also provide a means to compare data to future execution projects, since without proper documentation, many concerns would get lost in the daily project activity. This article is comprehensive [...]
Using and Managing Primavera P6 Issues
Introduction to Issues and Notebook Topics in Primavera P6 Primavera P6 users can take advantage of tracking their project concerns with its ability to store and communicate project issues and notebook topics. Issues often arise during the execution of a project, and being able to conveniently document, store, and communicate these issues to the project team can be valuable throughout the project's lifecycle. This Primavera P6 feature also provides a means to compare data to future execution projects. This article will cover how to use and work with Primavera P6 issues. Working with Primavera P6 Issues and the Different [...]
Hiring an Owner’s Representative
Introduction A construction project can be exhaustive and overwhelming at certain times. Multiple factors will take part in the successful handling of the Project. Project owners are often too busy with multiple projects or other management tasks that they cannot pay the full attention needed for a project. Sometimes the Owner lacks certain skills and resources required to complete the project; therefore, the Owner hires an Owner’s Representative (OR) to act on their behalf and effectively execute the project. OR is a third party hired by the client/owner to serve the owner throughout the project phases from the bidding [...]
What makes a good baseline schedule?
A project baseline is one of the essential project management documents created before the project's execution. It includes the project execution strategy, key project deliverables, activity planned dates, and important milestones. It generally consists of three parts: Scope Baseline Schedule Baseline Cost Baseline What is a Schedule Baseline? A Schedule Baseline is also referred to as a target schedule. It is a vetted copy of the initial project baseline, used to review the project performance and report any variances in the schedule. Furthermore, it creates a path for other relevant project management documents like cost baselines, mobilization plans, and resource [...]
Schedule Control of a Project
Before starting a project, an approved schedule baseline needs to be developed and agreed upon by the stakeholders. During project execution, having a good system of monitoring and updating the performance status of project activities is essential. The activity duration is calculated according to the available resources one is ready to expend. Some activities will inevitably take more time and cause lag while some will complete early and cause lead. All this is associated with what is called Schedule Control. What is Schedule Control? The part of the project cycle that includes monitoring the current status of each activity [...]
